"Not true at all. Vaseline is manufactured right here in the United States." Don Sutton on rumors that he used a "foreign substance" on the ball. Sutton, in his day, was as renowned for the scuffball as Gaylord Perry was for the spitter. When Perry met Sutton for the first time, Perry reached into his pocket and gave Sutton a tube of Vaseline as a gag gift. Without missing a beat, Sutton reached into his own pocket and gave Perry a square of sandpaper! 42-year-old Don Sutton of the California Angels was facing off against 44-year-old Tommy John of the New York Yankees, at a game played in Anaheim. During the game, a camera close-up caught what appeared to be sandpaper taped to the palm of Sutton's left hand, normally hidden by his glove. Sutton was a notorious ball scuffer and here was incontrovertible proof! George Steinbrenner, watching the game at home, called the visitor's dugout and ordered Mgr. Lou Piniella to march out onto the field, point out to the umpires where the sandpaper was hidden, and get Sutton thrown out of the game. "George," Lou Piniella patiently replied. "The guy who taught Don Sutton everything he knows about cheating, is the guy pitching for us tonight. We're winning 2-1. Our guy is cheating better than their guy." "Don Sutton has been accused of cutting, scuffing, sandpapering, and generally disfiguring balls in so many ways that Sutton said: "I ought to get a Black & Decker commercial out of it. The only fun I get now is hiding dirty notes in my uniform pockets for the umpires to find when they search me. I have a bet with PGA golfer Gary McCord that if I'm searched on National TV, I'll strip to my undershirt and jock.'" "Salvation Through Salivation." Thomas Boswell. NEVER missed a turn in the rotation in 756 big league starts. Spent the entirety of his 23 years in the MLB as a starting pitcher, taking the ball every fourth or fifth day, WITHOUT exception, for over two decades from 1966-1988. Don Sutton.